Calling all i-Riders, new and old: Get a YEAR of free public transportation

The American Public Transportation Association is sponsoring a video contest—you could win a YEAR OF FREE TRANSIT and an iPod touch for your video telling the world why you choose to ride public transportation.

What’s more, the first 25 individuals who submit a video entry to the contest will receive a $25 VISA cash card just for competing and telling everyone why you dump the pump and ride Capital Metro.

The contest is open to the public and submitted videos will be judged on creativity, content and overall impact. The grand prize winner will receive FREE rides for a year on their local transit system and an iPod touch. APTA will provide each of the winners with their free transit pass.

Simply upload your videos to YouTube with the tag “dump the pump”. Deadline to enter is September 18.

5 thoughts on “Calling all i-Riders, new and old: Get a YEAR of free public transportation”

There’s not a post for this yet, but I’m blown away by the 2x fair increase proposal for the MetroRail. Even taking into account the upgrade from an express bus to the metrorail, assuming the plan is still to reduce express bus service based on what is offset by the new train, it is still a 100% fare increase.

The Death of the Dillos could have been seen from a mile away with the reduction of five routes to two. There seemed to be plenty of people on the Dillo all the time with the old routes, but anytime I rode the Dillo on the new routes (when they were free or for fare), many times, I’d be the only one on the bus besides the driver.

I love public transit and am supportive of CapMetro moreso than the average joe, but I’m beginning to understand why so many people around town are vocally critical of CapMetro.

I’m looking forward to submitting official public comment during this phase.

Capital Metro is now paying the price for not standing firm on the LAST fare increase, as it should have. At the current fare, and even at the proposed increased fare, CM is still one of the least expensive transit systems in the nation.

I’m sad to see CM give up on the dillos. The new routes were a disaster, and instead of coming up with better routes, they’ve apparently decided just to scrap the whole service.

The old routes seemed to me to be pretty popular, and when they were discontinued – which was right around the time of near $4 gas – it put a tremendous strain on the 1 and some other routes.

And it seems to me that you could come up with some dillo routes that would be very popular. For example, how about clockwise and counterclockwise service on a loop consisting of South Congress, South Lamar, Oltorf and Barton Springs? Or Congress, Lamar, Ben White and William Cannon?

Loops would make good dillo routes because you allow many riders to make a trip in one leg instead of two.

I’m sure our readers could come up with other loops that would make for popular dillo routes.

If the dillos go on the scrap heap, the thing I think I will miss the most about them is their air conditioning systems. The AC on the dillos ROCKS. I don’t know why CM has never used that as a marketing focus. On a 100-degree day there’s nothing better than hopping on a chilly dillo!